Starbase

This article is considered accurate for the current version (2.3) of the game.

Mammalian Citadel

A starbase is the primary space station used throughout the game and is used for things such like determining the ownership of a given star system, construction, repair and maintenance of ships, collection and transportation of Trade Value in addition to it acting as a strategic fortress during warfare.

Contents

A starbase's most fundamental function lies in asserting ownership over a star system. Doing so requires fully surveying the desired system and then constructing a starbase in it. The build cost is 100 Alloys and an additional influence cost on top of that. The influence cost is determined by a fixed cost which is then multiplied by the shortest path of hyperlane jumps (gates and wormholes act as "shortcuts") between the target systems and the empire's closest owned system.

Once built, the starbase will appear orbiting the center point of the system. It cannot be destroyed by any regular means but it can still be dismantled by its owner during peacetime if it is of no more than outpost level (higher-level starbases will need to be downgraded to outpost in order to be dismantled). If a starbase is dismantled, the system reverts back to being neutral and unclaimed and can then claimed by any empire.

Besides the initial influence cost, upgrading the starbase to a higher level above outpost level will cost only alloys. Aside from making the starbase more powerful due to better base stats and the addition of more weapon components, the upgrade also allows the owner to fit the starbase with different buildings and modules to increase its defensive capabilities and improve its contribution to the empire beyond its basic role of system control and defense. One such important module is the Shipyard which enables the construction of military ships in the starbase. Having multiple shipyards on a starbase allows it to effectively act as a "fleet manufactory" by constructing several ships in parallel, simultaneously. Shipyards build order is independent from the main build order of starbase.

Though it is not possible to design a starbase, its components will be auto-fitted with the latest advanced technology as soon as they are made available (at no additional cost to the owner).

Systems with starbases bigger than outposts require a higher influence cost to claim (25 influence). Consequently, those starbases grant a higher war-score if occupied successfully (10 occupation value). An additional benefit of upgraded starbases manifests in them including an FTL inhibitor which, as long as the starbase remains active, prevents enemy ships from leaving the system via any hyperlane other than the one they arrived through. This allows an FTL inhibitor-equipped starbase to turn strategically important systems into efficient choke points, delaying hostile fleets from leaving the system and advancing further by forcing them into an engagement which may last long enough for reinforcements to arrive.

During war, an attacker must disable the enemy's starbase within the system in order to seize control of any planets found within said system. As starbases cannot be destroyed, this is achieved by reducing their Hull points down to 0, disabling them. The starbase will then remain incapacitated for a duration of 30 days (after the latest attack), during which time any military ships in close proximity to the starbase will be able to gain control over it. If the starbase is left unoccupied and is not attacked, it will enter a self-repair phase and become operational again as soon as it regains 5% Hull points. If there are multiple empires fighting on one side of the war, the newly-occupied system will then be assigned to the empire with the strongest claim, even if the system wasn't conquered by them.

Occupied starbases are fully operational and can repair ships of the side that controls it, inhibit FTL for "enemy" ships, and manage defense platforms, all empire-wide bonuses will also be applied, including home territory modifiers (The Eternal Vigilance ascension perk's platform cap of the original owner is also temporarily retained). However their buildings and modules cannot be changed, and they cannot be upgraded or downgraded, although they can be returned back to the owner.

It's worth noting, that auto-upgrading a starbase can "gift" higher tech components to occupied starbases (including FTL inhibitors!), while keeping their own more advanced components. They will stay equipped even if said starbase is reclaimed back, so repeated re-conquering might become harder both sides.

Systems containing an unoccupied starbase or unoccupied colonized planets will not be transferred in a forced status-quo peace.

An empire can in theory have as many starbases as their economy can support but an empire can only maintain a limited number of upgraded starbases bigger than outposts. The number of upgraded starbases an empire can support is dictated by the Starbase Capacity and exceeding that capacity will cause all upkeep costs for starbases to increase by +25% Upkeep for every starbase exceeding the cap. This is an empire-wide modifier, and thus affects all starbases owned by the empire. This modifier also affects the maintenance of any modules and buildings on the starbases. Regardless of their level, each starbase bigger than an outpost occupies only one capacity slot and if the need arises, an empire can always downgrade existing starbases back to outpost level to reduce the number of upgraded starbases to within the cap limit.

The base Starbase Capacity is 3, which can be increased by the following:

A starbase is auto-fitted with the latest components as soon as they are available to the empire. This is done automatically and has no additional cost for the empire - as such this also does not affect a starbase's level upgrade cost.

The weapon slots are fitted with the most effective kinetic and energy weapons (though not necessarily by equal division). The utility slots are divided equally between shield and armor components (auto-fitting does not add hull components here), while the auxiliary slot uses standard auto-fitting of a shield capacitor or auxiliary fire-control (whatever is available in order of priority).

Upgrading a starbase can only be done in a sequential order - meaning that if one were start with a basic outpost and wants to upgrade it to a citadel, they have to go through every single level in between in order to get to the desired level. Downgrading a starbase, however, reduces its level to the basic outpost level (outpost) straight away - regardless of what level the starbase initally was - and removes any present buildings, modules, and any defense platforms over the outpost's capacity limit. Any resources invested into the starbase prior to downgrading will not be refunded.

Starting from the starport level all starbases can repair docked ships (regardless of whether or not it has a shipyard onboard) and have an FTL inhibitor onboard if technology is available.

Note: The table lists the base properties of each starbase level. The actual values themselves will differ due to one's progress in-game (technology, tradition, and etc.), existing modifiers (if any) as well as individual starbase composition (buildings, modules, and etc.).

Starbase

Level

Cost

Slots

Military properties

Requirements

Description

M

B

D

Weapons

Utilities

Outpost

0

100

100

1

0

0

3

5000

1000

1

2 1

75 Influence per hyperlane jump from closest owned system

The most basic kind of Starbase, Outposts are lightly-armed stations built in stellar orbit to extend national borders. Outposts can not support any Buildings or Modules and are not listed in the Outliner.

Starport

1

200

360

2

2

1

6

10000

2000

2 1

6 1

Outpost

Upgrading the Outpost, Starports can house one Building and support two Modules.

Starhold

2

500

720

3

4

2

9

20000

5000

4 1

10 1

Starhold

Starport

Upgrading the Starport, Starholds can house two Buildings and support four Modules.

Star Fortress

3

1250

1080

4

6

3

12

40000

10000

6 1

14 1

Star Fortress

Starhold

Upgrading the Starhold, Star Fortresses can house three Buildings and a full complement of six Modules.

Citadel

4

3500

1440

5

6

4

15

80000

20000

12 1

26 1

Citadel

Star Fortress

Upgrading the Star Fortress, Citadels are the largest and most heavily fortified type of Starbase and can house four Buildings and a full complement of six Modules.

A fully upgraded starbase can support up to 4 buildings. Unlike modules, it is only possible to construct a single building of any type. Building cost is reduced by −25% by the Modular Engineering technology.

Building

Effects

Requirements

Description

Art College

200

360

2

+10 Unity

A diplomatic agreement with the in-system Artisan enclave

Is not:

Gestalt Consciousness

Fanatic Purifiers

This zero-g Art College, operated in conjunction with the nearby Artisan Enclave, celebrates the beauty of outer space in the works produced by its talented students.

Black Hole Observatory

100

360

2

+10 Physics research

Subspace Sensors

System contains a black hole

By building a specialized science facility dedicated to studying a black hole, our empire will surely be able to see improvements in our understanding of Physics.

Colossus Assembly Yards

1000

720

20

Colossus construction enabled in Shipyards

Colossi

Citadel

Shipyard

Abandoning the traditional concept of drydocks, Colossi are assembled by a number of highly mobile independent construction platforms.

Command Center

250

360

5

Defensive aura:

+10% Fire Rate

Command Matrix

Star Fortress

All system defense efforts are coordinated from this large facility, buried deep within the hull of the Starbase. Map arrays and 3D projections track all space traffing passing through the system at any given time.

Communications Jammer

50

180

1

Offensive aura:

–20% Combat disengagement chance

–20% Sublight speed

These powerful jammers interfere with enemy ship-to-ship communications, making it difficult to coordinate fleet movements.

Crew Quarters Crew Gestation Chambers

50

180

1

–25% Docked ship upkeep

Provides accommodation and support for spaceship crews, reducing the logistical burden on fleets that are berthed here.The ability to birth and gestate crew drones directly on-site is a logistical boon to local fleets.

Curator Think Tank

100

360

2

+5 Research

A diplomatic agreement with the in-system curator enclave

Genocidal

By constructing a research facility entirely focused on learning from, and cooperating with, the Curators, we are able to make significant contributions to our scientific progress.

Deep Space Black Site

100

360

2

+1 Unity

System gains:

+25% Governing ethics attraction

+5 Stability

The Living State

System is colonized

Gestalt Consciousness

A large part of this Starbase has been set aside as a Black Site that does not officially exist. The entire system is closely monitored from here, while intelligence operatives carefully manipulate local media and social events to the best of their ability.

Defense-Grid Supercomputer

150

360

2

+8 Defense Platform Capacity

Synchronized Defenses

A powerful supercomputer coordinating the relative orbit and firing arcs of the Starbase's defensive platforms, increasing the number of defensive platforms that can be supported.

Disruption Field Generator

100

180

2

Offensive aura:

–20% Shield hit points

Generates localized fields of agitated subatomic particles around hostile ships in the system, significantly reducing the effectiveness of their shields.

For our newly recruited crews to be truly combat ready, they must have capable officers leading them. The Fleet Academy will ensure those officers have up-to-date knowledge on the doctrines and practice of interstellar warfare.Repeated simulation of various battle scenarios will better prepare our shipboard combat drones for real combat.

Hydroponics Bay

50

180

1

+3 Food

Hydroponic Farming Tech

By dedicating a section of this Starbase to Hydroponic farming, the station will be able to feed itself and even export excess produce to other systems.

Hyperlane Registrar

100

180

2

Defensive aura:

+20% Combat disengagement chance

–20% Jump charge time

–20% Jump cooldown

Hyperlane Breach Points

Assists friendly ships in the system with FTL travel by identifying ideal conditions for entering the hyperlanes and optimizing projected travel routes.

Listening Post

100

360

2

+2 Sensor Range +4 Hyperlane detection range

Gravitic Sensors

The Listening Post houses a team of dedicated operators tasked with analyzing hyperlane reverberations, functionally extending the range of the Starbase's sensors.

Naval Logistics Office

100

360

2

+2 Naval capacity from Anchorage

Interstellar Fleet Traditions

Anchorage

A minimal-but-extant bureaucratic layer increases the theoretical capacity of the Starbase's Anchorages.

Nebula Refinery

100

360

2

+6 Minerals

Mineral Processing

System is inside a nebula

By processing the dust clouds of a nebula, we are able to refine and extract valuable minerals.

Offworld Trading Company

100

360

0

+2 Trade Value from Trading Hub

Space Trading

Gestalt Consciousness

Trading Hub

The offices of a non-governmental organ dedicated to improving the conditions of interstellar trade.

Resource Silo

50

180

0

+2000 Resource Storage Capacity

Massive resource silos and energy storage facilities where large quantities of minerals and energy can be safely kept.

Target Uplink Computer

100

360

2

+50% Starbase weapons range

An advanced targeting computer that collects and analyzes data from all friendly sensor sources in-system. This makes it far easier for the Starbase to achieve targeting solutions.

Titan Assembly Yards

500

720

10

Titan construction enabled in Shipyard

Titans

Citadel

Shipyard

Specialized drydocks erected on the Starbase's hull allow for the construction of gargantuan Titan-class ships.

Trader Proxy Office

100

360

0

-5% Market fee

System has Trader enclave

Is not:

Gestalt Consciousness

Fanatic Purifiers

The Trader Enclave enjoy special privileges on the Galactic Market, which can also benefit us.

A starbase's self-defense capabilities can be further reinforced with the construction of defense platforms. These platforms are smaller military stations deployed around the starbase. They will engage any incoming hostile forces, effectively acting as a buffer, by attacking and distracting them from focusing their efforts on the starbase itself. When compared with ships, platforms are situated between destroyer and cruiser classes, their hull and armament slightly better than the first, while armor-potential is equivalent to the latter. However, due to them having no evasion whatsoever, individual platforms are still very vulnerable, and if a strong, sustainable firepower is a priority it is wiser to put more turrets on the base itself.

As opposed to the auto-fitting of the starbase's components, defense platforms can be altered through the ship designer allowing for several designs to be built based on the different needs in each front and upgraded based on this designs. However, unlike ships, their designs cannot be switched once built, necessitating dismantling and complete rebuilding. It also renders any transferred platforms non-upgradeable. Economically defense platforms are, again, comparable to destroyers, but they cost no minerals upkeep.

Each starbase can support only a certain number of defense platforms based on its level. However, the defense platform capacity can be increased with the following:

In addition to the regular defense platforms, a more powerful platform type may be constructed equipped with an Ion Cannon weapon (once the required technology has been researched). This platform type carries a singular weapon, identical to the Perdition Beam weapon and which can not be changed, capable of engaging enemies from further away. It is titan-class hull-wise, although armored only as battleship, economically it also comparable to the latter without mineral upkeep, and it is deployed quite slowly.

An ion cannon platform occupies 8 defense platform capacity slots and can only be constructed by citadel level starbases.